Pep Boys no longer repairs tires? (RANT!)

[alreadygone]

Auto Union,

Yes any stop-gap method to get back on the road is acceptable. But when time and finances permit, good idea to have it done RIGHT!

Bob

 

[OriginHacker21]

An older woman (husband died a few years ago) who lives a few houses down called Pep Boys asking for a new battery. They got her car info and battery type and said it would cost $60 to install and $69 for the battery. ?!?! I drove down to pep-boys - bought the battery - and my dad installed it in 4 minutes.

These shops do anything to make money. You can't trust anyone anymore (after those Jiffy Lube videos and what not).

 

[The Critic]

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An older woman (husband died a few years ago) who lives a few houses down called Pep Boys asking for a new battery. They got her car info and battery type and said it would cost $60 to install and $69 for the battery. ?!?! I drove down to pep-boys - bought the battery - and my dad installed it in 4 minutes.

These shops do anything to make money. You can't trust anyone anymore (after those Jiffy Lube videos and what not).

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They installed my batteries for free in the past. (Pep Boys)

The last few times they charged me $20, but I had them do it since they were replacing the alternator already.

 

[Cutehumor]

ha! reminds me when I went to walmart to get a tire plugged for a nail. said it couldn't be plugged, something about there was two small nails to close together. of course, trying to sell me a new $89 tire. I call bull and put the tire back on for no fee. I plugged it myself with one of their 10 dollar kits over a year ago

 

[Cutehumor]

I found pretty much those road hazard on tire warranty are gimmicks. I always decline it when I buy tires. They aren't going to give you a free tire, they rather plug it or make you pay prorate prices. Just seems like a system to get you to go back to their shop for new tires. anyone ever collect on them?

 

[Hirev]

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DIY plug. I do it right on the car and pump it up with a 12v pump. EASY.

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That's dangerous. What if it fails at high speeds?

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Based on what information or experience? I've patched & plugged hundreds of tires and tubes in my lifetime. Problems I had with a properly installed plug is ZERO. I can't same the same about putting patches in a tire or a tube.

 

[Hirev]

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I found pretty much those road hazard on tire warranty are gimmicks.

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From my experience they are. I've tried to collect on two different ones years ago. Got nothing but lip service.

Best to save your money and not buy them cause they are a joke.

 

[Trucku]

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That's dangerous. What if it fails at high speeds?

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I have plugged a few tires and never had any issues. Drove to Florida and back 2 times with no issues.

 

[Trucku]

when they pulled that #@$%! you should of stepped outside and called there corporate office. Now if you refused a repair that they can do and they removed the tire, then that is different.
I went in for speed balancing for my tires and the minute the guy started to shoot bullcrap out of his mouth instead of doing what I asked, I left. Next thing you know they would tell my my pressure was bad and they need to replace valves for $9 each and then maybe the stem is bad..etc..

I had issues with one right around my way and the best thing to do is call corporate and they can straighten issues out. Week after week of trying to buy a jack set with stands, chocks and roller, the manager never tried to help. He would not make an effort, just try to sell me a "chrome" set for $30 more. After more than enough I called and complained and next week I got the set "chrome" for the same price as the normal set. They were identical except for finish. I preferred the red ones, but I had work to do on my truck.

 

[PW01]

If my local Pep Boys is any indication, I wouldn't even trust them to balance the tires! They are very close to my home, so I reluctantly buy "off the shelf" items (if they aren't out of stock!) from them but I can't imagine having them perform any type of service.

 

[occupant]

We bought a set of tires for my wife's car, brand new, from the Pep Boys around the corner from our house. After about 10K, we took at trip to east Texas and on the way back we got a flat. A roofing nail, in between the tread, not near the sidewall. We called the Pep Boys near our house and they told us to take it to one close to us, gave us directions and generally were 100% helpful. So I put on the doughnut, drove to this podunk PB, and went to the counter.

PB: Whatcha need?
ME: Tire plug.
PB: I don't think so, we don't do that.
ME: We bought the tires at a PB near us, we have road hazard, fix the tire.
PB: It's not that simple, buddy, we don't FIX tires, we replace them.
ME: Actually, unless you're planning on giving us a new free tire, it IS that simple.
PB: We'll see about that.

*car goes up, tire comes off, new tire goes on, bill prints out*

PB: That'll be $90.
ME: My arse.
PB: You want your car back or not?
ME: You want to keep your job or not?

*hand him the road hazard paperwork*

PB: This can't be real. We don't sell road hazard.
ME: My arse.

*called the other PB, got the managers talking to one another*

ME: Are you done eating your foot, or should I just get my spare keys and get on with the rest of my life?
PB: Here you go.

*keys in hand, I'm outta there*

What torqued me off the most, is that car now has one tire with 10K and three tires with 20K. All I needed was the old tire plugged or patched. And on the subject of plugs and patches:

1995 Buick Century, got a cut in the tire on the very edge of the tread where the sidewall starts. Cheerfully took it to an urban inner city tire shop where the nice non-English-speaking guy put a plug in it. $4 is all he wanted, I gave him $10. Drove for 30,000 miles like that until I sold the car, with this vibrant orange tire plug sticking out of the tire.

1989 Chevrolet Celebrity, got a screw stuck in between the tread, took it to Discount Tire where I had bought the tires, they patched it (not a plug, I was SHOCKED). It failed at 55mph the next afternoon, maybe 100 miles later. You bet your arse they replaced that tire for free.

 

[Auto-Union]

I had a pair of tires mounted at PB a few days ago in an emergency. Pressure was 24, took 2 hours and cost $43. WalMart does 2/$17.... for me.

 

[Doc8404]

Walmart in NY won't repair tires anymore and they don't even sell the road hazard anymore...just one more reason not to get tires there.

 

[Winston]

Flat tires are a pain. I got a hole in the sidewall of a tire on my 4WD. The tires had about 30% tread left. Can't repair the tire. Don't want to put on a new one and have one tire bigger than all the rest. Broke down and purchased a new set of 4. Now I have a nice 30% spare to use if I get another unrepairable flat.

Nobody's fault, just frustrating.

BTW, nobody can beat Costco's price and service on tires. $10 mount and balance. LIFETIME rotation and BALANCE. Free flat repairs, but only a prorated road hazard warranty.

 

[ekpolk]

This story is just another straw on the back of a camel that broke a long time ago. Among other things, the geniuses at PoopBoys destroyed the brakes on the Civic I owned from 88-98. The tech was too lazy or too ignorant to properly re-attach (think torque specs...) the lug nuts after mounting the tires I had just purchased there. The brakes, which had been as smooth as could be going in were horribly warped coming out. Of course, they denied that they'd done anything.

The only reason I ever set foot in a PoopBoys is to get someting I can't find anywhere else conveniently (like Redline fuel treatment). There's not a snowflake's chance in Hitler's corner of he$# that they'll ever touch a car of mine again!

This pretty will sums my opinion of PoopBoys:

 

[beercollector]

Here in hippie country, Santa Cruz CA, the general practice is gas stations repair tires and tire shops sell you new tires. Lloyd's tire only charges a lift fee to repair tires that were purchased there IMO, great business.

One of the shop guys at Steve's Union 76 plugged a really nasty screw from the outside on my last car that held up for 20k plus until the insurance co took the car after it was totalled. I drove over 100 miles per day at the time, and the tire was just fine.

What really bites is having to buy tires after sidewall damage. Here, and probably where everyone else is, the potholes are deep and will tear the sidewall on the jagged edge instead of just separating at the rim or a tread puncture. Some tire shops assume you hit a curb and give a bad attitude and a hefty bill. No fun at all.